A cow does not eat hay after calving: what to do and what is the reason, treatment

Complications after childbirth in cows do not always go away with obvious signs. A he alth problem is often defined as a lack of appetite. A symptom occurs with physiological and chemical changes in the body, when infected with an infection. The method of treatment depends on the diagnosis. What to do if, after calving, the cow does not eat hay well and does not drink water, it is determined by the accompanying symptoms.

Causes and treatments for reduced or lack of appetite in cows

Inability to digest hay or obstruction of the digestive tract are the main reasons why a cow has no appetite. They are often caused by infectious and non-communicable diseases.

Peresis

Hypocalcemia, or paresis - a nervous disease that occurs due to a lack of calcium in the body and a decrease in blood sugar levels. Against the background of the condition, paralysis of the hind limbs, swallowing muscles and tongue develops, as well as tympania. Loss of appetite with paresis is only a consequence of concomitant pathologies. Paralysis occurs after childbirth if the pregnant cow did not start. The main symptoms of the condition:

• weakness, the animal has fallen down and cannot get up to eat;
• low temperature;
• breathing with wheezing;
• drooling, tongue falling out of mouth.

Sometimes a cow's legs tremble after calving, the neck is bent in the shape of the letter S. The disease is accompanied by loss of consciousness. Without treatment, the animal will die on the third day. But the introduction of medicines at the initial stage relieves the condition, and after 3 hours an appetite appears.

Paresis is treated with the following drugs:

• 10% calcium chloride - 400 milliliters;
• 40% glucose solution - 250 milliliters;
• 20% caffeine-sodium benzoate - 15 ml;
• 25% magnesium sulfate - 40 ml;
• vitamin D2 - 2.5 million units.

Also, the animal is given first aid - they warm it by rubbing from the sacrum to the withers, put a heating pad and cover it with a blanket.

Eating afterbirth

The digestion of ruminants is not designed to dissolve biological tissues. The shell creates a feeling of fullness in the stomach, and the animal loses its appetite. But the afterbirth does not move further than the scar and does not burp. The cow is thin and cannot eat. The afterbirth is eaten by cows that did not receive a balanced diet during pregnancy.

Signs of shell eating:

• lack of appetite;
• gastric bloating;
• temperature increase;
• increased heart rate and breathing;
• colic;
• diarrhea;
• parts of the placenta and a lot of mucus in the dung.

The cow not only cannot eat, but also does not drink water. Eating the placenta is indicated by its absence on the bedding after calving and in the uterus as a result of examination. How to help a cow:

• do not feed for 24 hours;
• transfer to an easy-to-digest food with Glauber's s alt, castor oil and gastric juices.

Digestion and appetite are stimulated with a solution of hydrochloric acid and pepsin - 20 grams of each substance per liter of water.

Endometritis

Inflammation of the lining of the uterus, or endometritis, is an infectious disease caused by coccal bacteria. Infection is accompanied by intoxication.

Symptoms of pathology occur within three to five days after calving:

• bloody vaginal discharge;
• milk reduction;
• loss of appetite;
• temperature increase;
• wall thickening, prolapse and no uterine contractions.

Cow abruptly refuses food and loses weight.

The disease is treated with complex antibacterial drugs with chlorhexidine and propanol, with the antibiotic Levofloxacin.

In the absence of necrotic processes, the condition is facilitated by washing the uterus with a solution of furacilin. For a general strengthening effect, a ten-day course of drugs based on the placenta is prescribed.

Postpartum sepsis

The disease occurs after calving due to infection of the blood with streptococci or staphylococci. The infection spreads throughout the body from a focus in the genitals or in the uterus.

There are three types of sepsis:

• pyemia - accompanied by the formation of secondary foci in other tissues and organs by the type of metastasis;
• septicemia - constant release of toxins into the blood from one focus, rare in cows;
• septicopyemia is a mixed type, characterized by the appearance of new foci and the entry of bacteria into the blood.

General symptoms of infection:

• high temperature;
• rapid breathing;
• lack of appetite;
• gastric atony;
• weakness;
• dryness, bleeding of mucous membranes;
• ulcerative rashes on the skin.

Sepsis treatment:

• treat external foci of infection with antiseptic ointments, insert a swab soaked with antiseptic into the uterus;
• intravenous infusion of glucose, ascorbic acid and calcium chloride once a day, urotropin twice a day;
• intramuscularly inject antibiotics "Gentamicin", "Streptomycin" or "Bicillin".

First aid to an animal is to provide rest. The cow should be limited in nutrition, given light food - a mixture of bran and grass meal, sprouted oats, juicy root crops.

Vestibulovaginitis

If the cow has lost her appetite, has a fever, and has vaginal discharge after calving, suspect vestibular inflammation.

The disease is called vestibulitis, or vestibulovaginitis, and occurs as a result of trauma during childbirth, due to infection in an unsterile environment of the delivery room.

Two types of vestibulovaginitis are common in cows:

• acute phlegmonous - muscle and submucosal tissue are filled with pus, which erupts to the surface in the form of abscesses, and necrosis develops;
• acute diphtheria - the vaginal mucosa after calving becomes gray, swells, thickens, dead tissue comes out with brown discharge, ulcers remain on the mucosa.

With neglected vestibulovaginitis, sepsis develops.

Help for sickness:

• wash the vulva;
• rinse the vagina with a solution of manganese, "Furacilin", "Trypoflavin" or soda;
• lubricate from the inside or insert a swab with ichthyol, streptocidal or synthomycin ointment;
• cauterize external ulcers with iodine or lapis.

In case of necrosis, treatment with cephalosporin antibiotics is additionally prescribed - Cefotaxime, Ceftriaxone, Ceftazidime.

Birth canal injuries

If a cow stoops after calving, this is one of the signs of a postpartum complication caused by trauma. The birth canal is damaged during the passage of a large fetus or improper obstetric care. Often, an infection gets into the gaps on the external genital organs. Injuries at calving occur in primiparous animals. With vaginal tears, the cow gives little milk, and it will be possible to milk her only after recovery.

Cause of damage:

• increased tone of the uterus with the wrong position of the fetus;
• post-inflammatory scars constricting pathways;
• animal fall during contractions;
• actively stretching the calf with a poorly dilated cervix.

Breaks are complete and incomplete. Incomplete rupture is suspected with bleeding from the vulva.

If the cow humpbacks, superficial damage to the vaginal mucosa during calving can be suspected.

Through or complete rupture accompanied by hemorrhage into the abdominal cavity. If a calving cow has lost a lot of weight, is weak and drinks a lot of water, this is a likely sign of anemia as a result of blood loss.Ruptures can rarely be determined by palpation. More often, the injury is established when the animal enters the pathologist's table. Assistance is provided during childbirth - the edges of the wound are sewn together manually. With extensive ruptures, the uterus is removed.

Udder diseases

Mastitis and edema are painful complications after calving, in which the cow refuses to eat. Inflammation of the udder begins with hardening of the nipples and a decrease in the amount of milk. It contains clots and flakes. Pain occurs when milking.

Mastitis is caused by a bacterial infection in the skin of the udder. Acute forms are accompanied by high fever, general weakness of the cow, loss of appetite and dehydration. Helping a cow after calving:

• increase the proportion of fiber in the diet;
• milk frequently;
• wash the udder with nettle decoction.

In acute mastitis, the animal is treated with antibiotics.

Ketosis

The metabolic disorder in which blood glucose levels drop and ketones rise is called ketosis. Lack of sugar causes loss of appetite in cows after calving and in bulls due to malnutrition. To arouse interest in food, animals are given sweet food:

• sugar beet;
• carrot;
• hay or haylage.

Sugar is added to the water. They also offer to chew tea bags. If it is not possible to increase the glucose level, and a cow or a bull refuses even water, they resort to medicines:

• intravenous glucose solution;
• Tetravit intramuscular solution;

Animals are also given propylene glycol and sodium lactate to drink.

Postpartum hemoglobinuria

The disease develops in productive cows at the age of five to seven years, often after calving. The main cause of the pathology is spoiled food. Rotten vegetables, moldy hay lead to disruption of the intestinal microflora and fermentation. Instead of nutrients, toxins enter the bloodstream, and anemia develops. Most of the hemoglobin is excreted in the urine. General poisoning of the body is accompanied by fever, pathologies of internal organs. If, within two days after calving, the cow has stopped eating, gives little milk, and the urine has become cherry-colored, these are symptoms of hemoglobinuria. The condition is alleviated with dietary changes:

• exclude alfalfa and beet tops;
• add wheat bran to saturate the body with phosphorus.

To stop the loss of hemoglobin, the cow is given a solution of soda to drink. Intravenously administered glucose, caffeine.

Prevention measures

Loss of appetite after calving means the beginning of a pathological process in the body of a cow. Therefore, prevention is aimed at preventing specific diseases:

Eating the afterbirth Hypocalcemia Paresis, ketosis Endometritis Sepsis Vestibulovaginitis Udder diseases Wash hands and wash udders before and after milking, protect from overheating and hypothermia. Hemoglobinuria Control feed quality.

Be present at the hotel, monitor the afterbirth and immediately remove the placenta.
Do not overfeed during start-up, increase hay and reduce concentrates in the ration, let the pregnant cow go for a walk.
A week before calving, drink sugar solution - 300 grams of sugar per liter of water.
Keep drafts, keep stalls clean.
Maximum saturate the diet with calcium and potassium before calving - give alfalfa, soybean meal, silage.
Give birth in compliance with the rules of disinfection, change bedding before calving.

How to increase the appetite of a cow:

• worm twice a year;
• give daily 2 kilograms of hay, 1 kilogram of germinated wheat;
• add propylene glycol or glycerin energy drink to food - 100 grams per day during pregnancy and 200 grams after calving.

In order for animals to eat well and a lot, food is given 2-3 times a day. The diet should include vegetables, concentrates and high quality hay. The balance of vitamins and minerals is selected according to the productivity of the cow and according to the recommendations of the veterinarian.

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